US 12,332,325 B2
Method and electronic device for determining road type
Chia-Cheng Wang, New Taipei (TW); Jyh-Cheng Chen, Hsinchu (TW); and Yu-Xin Xiao, Hsinchu County (TW)
Assigned to National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu (TW)
Filed by National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu (TW)
Filed on Nov. 23, 2022, as Appl. No. 18/058,384.
Claims priority of application No. 111138294 (TW), filed on Oct. 7, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2024/0118352 A1, Apr. 11, 2024
Int. Cl. G01R 33/00 (2006.01); B60W 40/06 (2012.01)
CPC G01R 33/0094 (2013.01) [B60W 40/06 (2013.01)] 7 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for determining a road type, the method to be performed by an electronic device which is installed with a positioning system, the electronic device including a magnetic field sensor that is implemented by one of a magnetometer and a microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) magnetic field sensor, the method comprising:
transmitting, when the positioning system determines that the electronic device is approaching an environment having multi-level roads where the positioning system is prone to falsely determining a level of a road, a command to activate a function of determining the road type;
measuring, by using the magnetic field sensor for a preset period, a magnetic field of the environment in which the electronic device is located to obtain a plurality of magnetic field values based on a result of the measurement;
calculating an absolute value of a difference between every two adjacent magnetic field values among the magnetic field values sorted in chronological order;
calculating an average of the absolute values related to the magnetic field values, and making the average serve as a variation value for the environment;
determining whether the variation value is smaller than a predetermined threshold value;
when it is determined that the variation value is smaller than the predetermined threshold value, determining that the environment is a surface road;
when it is determined that the variation value is not smaller than the predetermined threshold value, determining that the environment is a non-surface road;
the positioning system obtaining road information and traffic information based on the determination that the environment is one of the surface road and the non-surface road; and
the positioning system performing navigation by providing to a user the road information and the traffic information, which match the road the user is currently on so the user is able to correctly navigate through the environment having multi-level roads.